


A Look Through The Pages

by Mony



Category: Hey Arnold!
Genre: F/M, shortakiweek
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-24
Updated: 2017-07-25
Packaged: 2018-12-06 03:38:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11592153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mony/pseuds/Mony
Summary: Various glimpses into the relationship of our two favorite blondes. Shortaki Week 2017. Accompanied art for each prompt is included. My art tumblr is mikosarthouse.





	1. History

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Alright so. This is going to be a series of ficlets that correspond with the 2017 Shortaki Week. They go along with the art I made for each prompt. Art can be found at mikosarthouse on tumblr. I’m really more of an artist, honestly. I haven’t written fiction in, I guess, over a decade or more so I’m basically new at this but I thought it’d be fun to give it a go. 
> 
> Big shout out to K (FFN: theps118confessional tumblr: ps118daily) for being the most amazing beta and friend a person could ask for. If it weren’t for her pushing the best out of me these wouldn’t be nearly as good as they are. So major props go to her for being so awesome. I highly recommend reading her fics, she’s fantastic and one of my favorite writers in this fandom.

It was like clockwork, really. He’d inevitably run into her before class, and she’d act as she always did. Or at least she’d try. A barely perceptible layer of anxiousness would cross her features and embed itself into her voice at the start. It was hardly noticeable, only if you were really paying attention.

Unfortunately for her, he did notice. Every time this daily little ritual happened she’d say her piece like always, and he’d stare at her intently for a few seconds longer than he should. An action he could tell unnerved her a bit. That wasn’t his intention, honestly, but the fact that she could keep this up always made him pause. He’d wonder if she would ever get tired of this, and what it said about himself that he continued to put up with it. After a few beats, he’d step aside, as was customary, and give her the same calm response before continuing on with his day.

“Whatever you say, Helga.”

His thoughts, however, would linger. His mind filled with her whenever it was given enough time to wander. A constant flow of memories on repeat for him to scrutinize. A tight grip on his sweater pulling him to safety from a flooding greenhouse. Beautiful words on a page from an entire volume that spoke of love dedicated solely to him. The ocean air, the sun shining off her hair, and the comfort she gave him when he realized the nasty sting of being used. The feeling of solitude lessening with her company as they walked around with tummies empty and minds full of feelings only they could relate to.

It made him restless, this growing need to learn more, to _know_ more. He made it a point to observe her closer than he ever had before, gathering new bits of information throughout the day in an effort to make sense of the girl that invaded his life as far back as he could remember. It fascinated him just how much he could pick up by actively paying attention to her instead of simply ignoring her antagonism as he used to. Besides the few instances in which they’d have a truce going, his life was plagued with her actively doing everything in her power to make him believe she hated him. It had gone on for so long that he _had_ believed it, anything that could run counter to that fact wasn’t reasonable and made no sense so he’d quickly discard it.  She’d conditioned him pretty well to believe that any romantic affection from her could only be an impossibility and the thinking of a mad man. Most days he’d wonder if even a normal friendship could potentially be possible someday, and even that thought could seem like a bit of a stretch. Love? His brain simply refused.

But he could no longer shrug off her behavior, ignore it, or shove it to the side. Designate it as nothing more than a tormentor having her fun with the unwilling victim. Deny any possibility that didn’t fit the mold. Because he knew better now. He knew _her_ better now. At least a little. And if he was going to figure out his own feelings on the mind shattering information he was given at the top of a certain building last summer, well, he had his work cut out for him.   

Yes, he knew she had meant it, how could he not? The look on her face, the way her voice rang with a sincerity he ever rarely heard from her; the frenzied passion gushing out of her as if it were the only chance she’d ever get to finally release it. The _kiss_. One no normal fourth grader would ever expect to receive, heck, _he_ certainly didn’t.

Helga was a good actress, but no kid could be _that_ good. It also didn’t help her case that he had been the one to give her, _give them both_ , an out. That he had seen her struggling to come up with an excuse in the aftermath for something they were both clearly not ready to face, so he handed it to her. Let her do with it what she will and give himself more time in the process.

All he could do now was run through their history together on his own in a desperate attempt to figure out just what he felt for this frustratingly vexing girl. Lord knows she wouldn’t be much help on the matter, not with how desperately she clung to the status quo. He knew he liked her, no matter how much she bugged him, he’d always liked her.

“But what kind of like is it really?” he muttered into the hand that was half resting his head and half covering his mouth as the bell for lunch finally rang. He distractedly grabbed his bagged lunch and joined Gerald on their trek to the cafeteria, barely paying attention to the words coming out of his best friend’s mouth.

His eyes subconsciously gravitated towards Helga’s usual table as they walked in and found her own staring back at him. After her initial shock at being caught subsided, she scowled at him and then quickly turned to Phoebe and started talking. He noticed her start to crack her knuckles, a sign she was unnerved. He’d learned that tell pretty early on. He shook his head and mentally told himself to stop looking before the other guys at the table caught on. As he chewed his food he continued to think on the question he’d asked himself over and over again since that day. Where exactly did his feelings stand in regards to Helga Pataki?

This was too important of a matter to give a half-hearted answer to. If he could be sure of _anything_ , it was that. Even if it took him a while to come to a solid conclusion. She deserved that much.

Didn’t she?

 

 


	2. Embrace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Here’s day two! Not much to say about this one. Pic will be up in a sec. I tried doing something fancy with the panels of the comic but I think it affected the flow a bit. Follow the numbers on the leaves for the right order.
> 
> Shout out to @leskuh for helping me tinker with some problems I had while making the art part of this. And Big thank you once again to K (FFN: theps118confessional tumblr: ps118daily) for being an awesome beta!!

**Embrace**

 

"ARNOLD!" She coughed and spat the water that entered her mouth. Her fingers desperately gripped a stray vine she'd latched on to out of pure luck. She ignored the slight pain from the part wrapped around her wrist for security as the rapid waters tried to pull her away. She could see Arnold not too far off, struggling to latch onto any stray rock he zipped by and failing.

He could barely hear her through the sloshing of the freezing water. It filled his ears and mouth when he attempted to shout back. It stung the back of his throat as he determinedly focused on trying to stay afloat instead and reach her side. He could barely swim against the current, but luckily, she was just ahead of where the water was taking him.

The river pulled him down, a force so powerful he feared he wouldn't make it up again. He closed his eyes and struggled against it, heart beating in his chest so badly he thought it would break through his rib cage.

Arnold suddenly felt his arm being gripped hard enough to bruise and opened his eyes to see a flash of pink and long strands of hair. He hurriedly reached for her to further anchor himself and pop his head out for a much-needed breath of air. He coughed, throat still stinging and uncomfortable, body shaking uncontrollably.

Helga started inching them towards the vine’s origin, a tree not too far from the river’s shore. He tried to help her along with one hand, his other arm wrapped around her waist securely. When it finally seemed like they were making good progress the sickening snap dashed all hope they both had.

They clung to each other in desperation, nails unintentionally breaking skin, hair whipping against their faces like razor blades. Every time they broke the surface of the water was short lived as they were carried along by its whims.

As they neared the edge of the waterfall their grip on each other’s arms tightened, the fear and hopelessness reflected in each other’s eyes as they faced each other. Terrified light sky-blue eyes were the last thing Arnold saw as they were once again dragged underneath. A sudden painful sensation overtook his senses as he felt himself pushed against the surface of a sharp rock. A section of his arm throbbed, he gritted his teeth to keep from opening his mouth underwater. It took all his power not to let go of Helga in shock, especially when he could feel his body start to plummet downward.

Their bodies were interrupted from the fall by something sturdy yet springy that immediately threw them sideways and towards the cliff the waterfall was falling from. Instead of the wall they expected to crash into they could feel themselves land on something equally as springy as before. They both gasped for air, waiting for their hearts to settle down in their chests.

Helga gripped her knees with shaking hands and pushed herself upward. She looked around as she rubbed the wrist that still felt sore from the vine before. She tried to focus on figuring out where they were, anything to distract from the near-death experience they’d just had and center her.

The light was muted and came mostly from the waterfall behind them. She carefully treaded across the netting they were on, made from vines she noted, that dipped as she walked, almost tripping over herself a few times. The walls indicated a cave of some sort, the parts closest to the running water shined.

“Where _are_ we? How the heck did we go from certain death to _this_ place?” She muttered shakily to herself.  

Arnold slowly crept to the nearest wall and leaned his back on it. Everything was swirling in his mind and weighing him down. His arm stung, his body ached, he was soaking wet, and they had just lost their biggest lead in the most important mission of his young life. Sinking down to the cold ground, he put his knees to his chest and stared at his soggy muddy shoes. He felt so, ...tired.

_Defeated_.

He hardly paid any attention to what Helga was doing, even when he could feel her take hold of the right arm he was vaguely aware was still in pain and started wrapping something around it. His left hand’s fingernails scratched the fabric of his shorts in a mindless and repetitive fashion as he closed his eyes and let his head fall back, relishing the coolness of the cave’s wall on his irritated scalp. He breathed in slowly, rhythmically. Tried his hardest not to let the panic build so high it overflowed.

After a few deep breaths, he softly said, “I give up.”

He knew she had heard by the way she’d paused for a second, he could tell her gaze was on him from the peripheral of his vision. She began her ministrations again as quickly as she’d stopped, and he felt the somewhat dizzying pressure reapplied to his arm.

“What do you mean, ‘I give up’?” She let go of his arm, finished with what she needed to do, and shot him a wary look.

“I _mean_ , I’m done. We’ve lost our only way of finding them and have no idea where we even are right now. I don’t want to continue to waste our time and _risk our lives_ for _nothing_ , ok?”

“Wh-” Helga started, and he almost made the mistake of looking at her. He interrupted her, staring at the glistening rocks of the opposite wall, speaking loudly over the sounds of the crashing water.

“I’m starting to think we never really had a chance to begin with, honestly. I should have known better than to lead us into something we can’t handle.” His fingertips scraped at the hard ground and balled into fists, not caring if it left marks or opened wounds. He was visibly shaking, but it wasn’t from the cold.

“Arnold,” he looked up at her, finally, at her hair that was plastered to her face and her bleeding lip, “stop.” She spoke finitely, staring at him hardly. But he just stared back intently. A coldness seeped through her veins that chilled her far more than her current waterlogged state. He was serious. He was _really_ serious right now.

He took her appearance in completely as she stared. Scrapes on her knees and arms, a bruise forming on her cheek. The cut on her lip shaking with the rest of her due to the cold. The redness of her blood only serving to work him up more.

“We’re alone in the middle of a _jungle_ and the amount of times we’ve almost- What if we keep going and then can’t make it back, huh? What if they catch us, keep us here, or worse! What if one of us falls or gets attacked, or- We just almost _drowned!_ ” Helga stared at him in disbelief, what was he, what was Arnold of all people, saying right now? This wasn’t right.

He shot out his hands to gesture towards the running torrents of water they had just managed to survive to emphasize his point. “If something happens to any of you because of me I’d- I wouldn’t know what to do. I can’t even imagine.” His voice shook, laced with a fear that consumed him. “I… I-I can’t lose anyone else, Helga. I can’t!”

Tears. There were tears in his eyes and Helga had never felt such a punch to her gut before. Never had Arnold Shortman openly cried in front of anyone, to her knowledge, and here he was, completely _devastated_ and breaking down before her eyes. The pain that wracked her heart made it shutter and ache like nothing else. She had to do something. Anything. Current precarious position of giving him more ammo for the biggest goof of her life be damned, this mattered far more than keeping up appearances she knew deep down were practically useless to begin with.

She’d sold herself out a year ago after all.

“ _Look_. I did not come all this way for you to just give up on the one thing you’ve wanted for your _entire life_!” His eyes widened a bit at the sudden outburst but she paid no attention to it and continued. “So we’ve hit a few snags along the way, we’ve made it past them haven’t we? We can make it past this too! After everything you’ve already accomplished in your _measly little life_ , do you honestly expect me to believe that you’re not capable of accomplishing the one thing you’ve decided to do for _yourself_? If anyone is worthy of getting what they want it’s _you_ , you annoyingly optimistic miracle working freak of nature, and I’m not going to let you give up on this when you’ve never given up on helping anyone _else_ before! So _suck it up_ , and keep moving. As long as there’s even the slimmest of chances, there’s _hope!_ ” No one said she had to sugar coat things completely. She knew he didn’t need that right now anyway.

Arnold was hit once again with all the confusion and warring emotions he’d been dealing with in regards to this girl for the longest time. He stared at her for a bit, eyebrows scrunched up and mouth set in a slight frown, before asking what he’d been meaning to since they’d started this journey. “Why are you _doing_ this? Why does it seem like your happiness is as much at stake as my own? They’re _my_ parents.”

Her eyes widened, and for a second he worried she would answer in her usual manner. Her shoulders began to square up, scowl forming on her face, but just as quickly, she stopped. Looked at him in defeat, and said nothing. What could she say? Nothing he’d buy. A vague annoyance mixed with frustration crossed her features as he looked into her eyes. Eyes that said it all.

_You know why._

And he did. It’s not that he asked her in hopes of an answer he’s known for the past year. He just wanted to hear her say it. Again. This time on her own, without being backed into a corner or affected by the adrenaline rush of the moment. But even if she did, what could he tell her? He still didn’t know where exactly he stood in regards to his feelings for her.

He couldn’t handle the look she was giving him any longer and glanced down. As he did a flash of pink caught his eyes. It was then he finally noticed just what she had been wrapping around his arm before.

“Your bow!” No. No, no, no, she didn’t.

“Yeah, so? It’s not like I have anything else to wrap your bleeding wound with!”

“But-!”

She cut him off before he could protest further, a no nonsense look on her face. “Arnold. It’s not a big deal alright! There’s no other choice anyway, you need something to cover it up and keep it as clean as possible. I’m not gonna let you get some stupid infection that stops us from what we need to get done just so I can keep some piece of fabric I can easily replace when we get back!”

Lies. He might not know the actual significance it had on her, but she wore that bow as long as he could remember. Probably just as long as he had worn his hat, every day without fail. It had to mean something special to her despite her insistence otherwise. And yet, she so easily gave it up for his sake. Just like she gave up riches to save the neighborhood. Just like she was refusing to let him give up on the most important thing in his life right now when she could so easily be freed from having to deal with any of this anymore.

Remembering what the conversation had started on, Helga pushed on with her original intent ignoring the intense look he was giving her, “Anyway, like I was _saying_. There’s no reason to give up just yet. We might be separated from them right now but you’ve got Gerald, and Phoebe, and the whole class at your disposal if you ask.” Her voice softened, letting down the guard she knew was necessary to get through to him. She gave him a soft smile and placed a hand on his shoulder. “And, and you’ve got me, ok? If you recall, I can be pretty amazing myself when I put my mind to it. So come on, Football Head, let’s work one of your stupid miracles and find a way to keep going, alright?”         

He could feel a swell of emotions build inside his chest. A tickling swirl of gratitude, a flush of affection and admiration, the buzzing of satisfaction that ran through to the end of his fingertips. He always knew she was capable of this, of sincerely and stubbornly being there for the people she cared about. Granted, the number of people was especially small, but whoever was lucky enough to be amongst them could count on her when things were bad. He’d caught glimpses of it before, most notably when they saved the neighborhood together, but this was the first time she decided to openly show she cared on her own. He knew he had been right about her all along. All he could wonder was what on earth had made him worthy of it.

A warmth ran through him, new tears building up for an entirely different reason. He was so grateful she had decided to come along, that despite his original concern and refusal to have her join them, she’d insisted. And now he felt like he could keep going, because she was right, he wasn’t alone in this. He had his friends, he had her, and he’d been waiting for this opportunity for his entire life. He couldn’t just give up, not this easily.

“Oh, and by the way, I cannot _believe_ you’ve made _me_ the voice of optimism here. Frankly, I think you should be _asham_ -oof!” Arnold couldn’t help the small glimmer of amusement he felt run through him at her sudden switch, (because honestly it wouldn’t be Helga without her reverting back at least a little bit to her former persona after awkwardly exposing herself too much for her own tastes) and with that, along with how overcome with gratitude he was towards the girl who had confused and amazed him his entire life, he hugged her.

“ _Thank you_ , Helga.”

 


	3. Exopse(d)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N:   
> I think it'd be best to go to my tumblr: mikosartshouse to see the image for this prompt, as it's... pretty big and has text that would be hard to read otherwise.
> 
> Also, bad news. This is the last written prompt I’ve actually got done and I really don’t see myself being able to finish the others on time. I’m a little stuck on the next one actually. However, I’m still planning to try and finish all the writing portions of the prompts, just for completions sake. They’ll just be posted long after Shortaki Week is done. Sorry about that . I’ll still be posting the art on my tumblr on time though as I’ve got those all done. 
> 
> Major thanks once again to K (FFN: theps118confessional tumblr: ps118daily) for betaing!

No matter how long she spent in this stupid jungle she'd never stop hating the annoying bugs that wouldn't leave her alone no matter how much she swatted at them. Or the uncomfortable itchiness from the debris her shoes kept kicking up and making home to. The constant humidity leaving her skin sticky and gross? Also could do without. And no matter her affections, she also hated the football headed little twerp currently pulling her along further into this hellish experience.

 

Especially when the branches he tried to move for the both of them didn't quite miss her face.

 

_Thwap._

 

"Hey! Will you watch it?!"

 

He glanced back at her looking mildly guilty but continued forward. Mind obviously occupied, he distractedly said, "Sorry,” before focusing ahead of him once again.

 

Oh yeah.

 

_Hate._

 

The night wasn’t too dark at least. The moon giving off plenty of light for them. She glanced back, the glow from the campfire the rest of their class was enjoying was getting dimmer as they walked on. Dread filled her belly as she looked forward and continued to follow along, mostly silent. Nerves kept her from saying much besides the occasional chastising to slow down a bit or be more careful with her person.

 

Her eyes gravitated to the side of his face. She noted his eyebrows were slightly scrunched up, and he’d occasionally bite his lip and squint his eyes as he made his way forward. He looked like he was on another mission, honestly. Face set in a determination she knew all too well from years of studying him. His hand held on to her wrist, the stickiness from both their sweat making it feel mildly uncomfortable. His grip firm as if to make sure she wouldn’t get lost.

 

_Or run_ , she thought wryly.

 

When asked earlier why he needed to drag her away from the rest of their class, he refused to say anything other than, “We need to talk.” Already a bad sign. Even worse was the fact that she was exhausted from everything they had accomplished in the past few days; she was in no condition to scheme her way out of anything right now.

 

One would think that after defeating an evil mastermind and finally getting his parents back, he’d want to spend every second with them. _Apparently not_. Well, alright, he _had_ spent as much time as possible with them since the moment they found them, but she still couldn’t see why whatever this was was so _urgent_.

 

For once in her life she wasn’t about to put up a fight though. If she was honest with herself, she knew what this was about. It was a long time coming, honestly, and she’d be a pathetic fool to think she could keep running from it.

 

Helga G. Pataki was anything but pathetic. It was time to finally square up and accept the rejection that was coming.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

As much as he wanted to continue celebrating with his friends and parents, his _parents_ , the buzzing happiness from those words alone was enough to cut through the butterflies currently fluttering inside his stomach, there was something that still needed to be settled.

 

It had to be now, while everyone else was distracted and wouldn’t miss them. And before the craziness of having to pack up and get ready to board a plane back home took over. He was afraid if he didn’t say it now, Helga would likely try to go back to the way things usually were. With an added element of her avoiding him like the plague, he was sure. That was definitely not something he was going to allow, no matter how nervous he was right now.

 

He wasn’t particularly scared of her reaction or rejection. Unless something seriously changed in the year since FTI that he hadn’t picked up on, he was sure she still felt something for him. What else could explain everything she’d done since they landed in San Lorenzo? No, his anxiety about the situation rested solely on how he was going to tell her. He knew, knowing Helga’s personality, that this wasn’t going to be as easy as it would be had it been anyone else. And he already knew from experience that confessing to someone wasn’t easy to begin with. However, as he’d come to learn over the past year, and their entire lives really, it being difficult or complicated wasn’t discouraging to him. In fact, along with the nerves currently being plucked by anxiety, he could feel a rush of excitement as well for whatever could come after. If there’s anything Helga had never been, after all, it’s boring.

 

Once they reached a clearing that was far enough away from outside eyes and ears he stopped, and immediately felt Helga snatch her hand back.

 

Before he could even take a deep breath to steady himself, she started talking. “Alright Football Head, why the _heck_ did you insist on dragging me out here?”. She put her hands on her hips and stared him down. He couldn’t help but take her in at that moment. Her hair was clean from any little sticks or leaves that had accumulated on their trek there, and her lips were chapped, just a little bit, but still a nice pink color.

 

He blinked and remembered she had just asked him a question. He made to give her an answer but she continued speaking instead.

 

“This is it, isn't it?” Helga nodded to herself quietly, stepping back from him as she reasoned to herself.

 

For a moment, Arnold thought she might know what he was going to say, that maybe things would go easier than expected after all.  “Honestly, Arnold.” She shut her eyes, he watched her chest rise and fall with a deep breath, “you don't have to say it. I know you know, so you don't have to let me down easy. I got it.” He tilted his head slightly to the side, now he was confused. “Us?” She said, as she gestured between them. “ _Not_ a possibility.”  Now the worry was starting to set in. Had he read her wrong after all? It's not that Arnold had ever felt he had a particular talent for girls, but he did wonder for a moment how he had managed to mess this up this badly _already_. “Message is _loud_ and _clear_.”

 

“Helga, I-”

 

“ _Arnold_ , you don't have to worry about it, alright.” She looked at him plainly, cupping her upper arm with her hand. “I've known this day would come for a very long time. And it's here now, so” she shrugged. “I've survived worse. Especially in this jungle.” The smallest of smiles cracked on her face. Another deep breath. Arnold felt his mouth drying out. This was not going according to plan. “So we can skip whatever little exposé that I’m sure you had beautifully planned. We both know I'm out of excuses, anyway.”

 

“But I-”

 

“Nothing else needs to be said, it’s _fine_.” She interrupted him again. Arnold made a mental note that they'd have to work on that later.

 

His heart fluttered a little bit at the thought of a “they”.

 

“And, thanks,” she turned away from him, “I guess. For keeping this between us, I mean. If Lloyd ever found out, I'd have no choice but to kill her. Keep it from spreading, y’know.” He could tell she was trying to lighten the mood, but the fact that she didn’t seem to be able to make eye contact with him again made his heart sink and had him scrambling for his words.

 

A small part of him was sort of amused really, that she has no idea what’s about to hit her. The fact that she didn’t pick up on his growing feelings throughout their days working together in this jungle had a bit of irony to it.

 

She was starting to walk away, and he was almost grateful for it. He doubted he could mess things up any worse. He turned his back to her and his eyes locked onto a beetle currently making its way up the tree trunk in front of him. Making sure his voice would carry he said loudly, “Actually Helga, I wasn’t planning on exposing anything about you, despite what you might think.” He heard her stop and he breathed in, noticing the pretty kaleidoscope on his new friend’s back. The little beetle trying it’s best to reach the top giving him that needed boost to get past the nerves, “If anyone's feelings should be exposed right now, it's _mine_.”

 

“Huh?!” The absolute incredulity in her voice was almost funny, honestly.

 

He shrugged and continued, “A part of me knew that it was wrong to just, agree that it never happened. FTI.” He could hear her suck in her breath at the mention of that summer. “But I had a lot to think about, a lot to _process_. Every part of me knew you meant it, so it didn't take long to accept that.”

 

He turned around, braced himself, and looked her in the eyes. He knew he had to make it perfectly clear. There couldn’t be any misunderstandings or half answered questions, not this time. “What did take me a while was how _I_ felt. I wanted to be 100% sure about this, and it honestly probably would have taken me even longer had all of _this_ not happened. It's pretty hard to make up my mind about how I feel when you're so difficult to figure out or even get to know better on a normal basis.” She was just standing there wide eyed, a look of utter disbelief on her face. It’s not like he was expecting her to answer--or wanted her to--until he’d finished though.

 

He placed his right hand to his heart and continued, “But after getting this opportunity to know you better and seeing all the things you’ve done in this jungle, after seeing the sides of yourself you hardly let anyone see, it reminded me of what I’ve always admired and liked about you”. He took a step towards her, reaching out for her hand. “And after getting closer I realized just how much I really, _really_ like you, Helga. I guess what I’m trying to say is, I want to be with you,” his hand tightened around her own a bit out of anxiousness, the important question he was about to ask her dancing on the tip of his tongue, “do you still want to be with me?”

 

Arnold watched her face go from bewildered shock, to emanating waves of exhaustion as she squinted at him. The little insecurities from before were starting to come back to him. This type of reaction also wasn’t exactly what he was expecting.

 

“… Right. Quick question: Did you hit your head?” Wait. What.

 

“ _What?_ No…?” The feeling of being utterly baffled by this girl was nothing new, but still effective apparently.

 

She didn’t even let him think of a reason for this kind of reaction before she continued in a manner that seemed increasingly delirious. “Did _I_ hit my head? _Pass out_? Am I _dreaming_? Yeah. _Yeah_ , that’s _gotta_ be it!” _Oh_ , now he got it. He let out an amused sigh and couldn’t help but give her an endearing half-lidded look as she rambled on. “I’m _definitely_ having one of those wish fulfillment dreams. I mean, there’s _no way_ this is rea-meemph?!” Well, if words wouldn’t do the trick maybe pulling her towards him by the hand he was still holding and landing a small kiss on her lips would.

 

The feeling was amazing. It wasn’t as intense as the one on that balcony but it still made him feel light and tingly down to his toes. He could feel her shock give way and start to relax into it too. They still had things to talk about, but at that moment he didn’t mind the kiss continuing for just a little bit long-

 

Suddenly a yell rang out that was abruptly cut off by a loud thud that made Arnold involuntarily jump. His eyes shot open as he quickly turned around to see his best friend picking himself up while continuing to yell and point in their direction.

 

Arnold started to panic and could feel the heat start to spread across his cheeks at being unexpectedly caught while in the middle of a kiss. A kiss with Helga G. Pataki, specifically. The one girl Gerald had always butted heads with in the past. He had hoped to let him know about the situation later in a more gentle and cautious way to avoid any possible hysterics, definitely not like _this_.

 

“ _GERALD?!_ ”

 

He quickly tried to think of some sort of excuse for the scene Gerald had just witnessed but was quickly distracted by the loud and very sudden thud that rang behind him.

 

Looking back, he found the very girl he’d just been kissing not 5 seconds ago on the ground and out cold.

 

“HELGA?!” Panic set in quickly at the sight. He rushed to her side to make sure she hadn’t seriously harmed herself with the fall. He supported her upper body in his arms, head elevated just in case.  
  
A sigh of relief was released when he saw she was alright. She even had a really goofy smile on her face despite being out cold. He couldn’t help the one that appeared on his own face at the sight. "Helga," he shook her gently, "are you okay?". She released a soft sigh and the smile on her face remained but didn’t wake. Overcome with warm affection, he brushed some strands of hair away from her face. He noted how soft it felt against his fingers, how her pink lips were parted in her unconscious state, how cute her button nose was, and how pretty she looked all relaxed like this. He could feel himself getting lost in all the little things he liked about her as his smile grew wider. The feelings he had for this girl were just so amazing, made his heart flutter with so much happiness and-

  
"ACH, GOD-", Oh. He had temporarily forgotten they weren’t alone anymore. He turned towards his best friend, who was sweating more than Arnold thought he had all trip. And that was saying something, considering he had stubbornly worn his thick sweatshirt the whole journey.  

 

Gerald smacked his hands over his eyes and continued with his exclamation, "WARN A BROTHA', WOULD YA?! A guy can only be scarred so many times, Arnold!"   
  
Arnold gave him the flattest look he could muster, “Gerald.” He then blinked, a thought hitting him. He looked around at the clearing incredulously, "Wait a minute, did you FOLLOW us here?!"  
  
"DETAILS." He shouted back. "Either way, I don’t deserve to have that image imprinted into my eyelids, ok?!"   
  
"I'D BEG TO DIFFER-" Arnold began to argue back.  
  
Gerald ignored him, looking towards the sky and lifting his hands dramatically, voice filled with an exaggerated agony, “How am I going to sleep?!”  
  
“ _Gerald._ You’re starting to _bug_ me.” That got his attention.  
  
“Alright, fine." Gerald dropped his act and his hands. He shoved them into his pockets, scuffing his sneakers on the ground. He looked up, and caught Arnold's eye. "You’re gonna explain everything to me later. And I mean, _everything._ ” He pointed a finger towards him, “Because I know there’s a lot you haven’t been telling me. You must have had your reasons but it’s still kind of cold, man.” The truth of that stung, the light guilt still there. He didn’t regret not telling him explicitly though, it was something he really needed to think on by himself. Plus, knowing Gerald’s feelings towards Helga, especially before this whole adventure, Arnold doubted he would have been very… helpful.  
  


But the crumpled look in his best friend’s eye gave him the smallest punch in the stomach anyway.  That feeling of guilt shot through Arnold again for not having confided any of this to Gerald before then. He knew he deserved some sort of explanation, even if not the complete story just at that moment.

  
“You're right, Gerald.” He told him honestly. “I'm sorry. I _promise_ , I’ll fill you in later. On _everything._ ” Now that he’d finally come to a conclusion there was no reason to keep things a secret anymore, at least from Gerald. He was very glad, honestly. Arnold had no idea how Helga kept so many secrets for so long, it was pretty exhausting. "But..." his hands slid protectively over Helga's shoulders. "I don't know, I kind of thought you already kn-"  
  
"I _still_ woulda liked to hear it from _you_." He replied before he could even finish his sentence. He was right, just because Gerald was able to figure it out on his own didn’t mean it absolved Arnold of keeping things to himself. Arnold knew he wasn’t mad, that it was just something that needed to be pointed out. He always liked Gerald’s forwardness. He nodded, letting him know he understood.

 

“So, about all of this. Are you gonna be ok with it?” Arnold’s eyes found Gerald’s and he gave him a look that told Gerald he had his permission to say what he thought about the changes that were going to happen between all of them. He tried to silently let him know that he did care what his best friend thought about it all, even if it turned out he didn’t agree with him.   
  
Gerald pushed his lips into a flat line, and then so subtly Arnold would have missed it if he blinked, he nodded. Almost as if to say "if you must."   
  
For a moment, nothing happened but the birds chirping in the background as they stared at each other, a moment of understanding breezing through like the wind.   
  
"We should get her back to camp," Gerald ended the silence, stepping forward and reaching down to Helga, grabbing her arm.  
  
That seemed to wake her up, “If you like having fingers, tall hair boy, I'd suggest removing them from my person." Her eyes snapped open, squinting at him as her other hand reached up to gingerly rub the back of her head. By the sound she’d made when she fell, she was bound to get a bump or a bruise at least.  
  
"Uh,” Gerald immediately retracted his hands and splayed them defensively in front of him, “considering this is my basketball hand, I'm gonna let you," he pointed at Arnold, "deal with all of this," he waved at Helga noncommittally, "from here on out." Helga let out a small snort and tiredly rolled her eyes.

 

Remembering what had just happened a few minutes ago, Gerald looked between the two other kids and figured it was probably his cue to leave first. “Well, if you guys are fine, I’m gonna head back to camp. Maybe ask a little lady for a dance.”

 

Helga narrowed her eyes, “You best watch yourself, Johanssen. My increased tolerance for you doesn’t mean you’ll get away with any _funny_ business”.

 

Gerald snorted, only able to find amusement in her antics now. “I could say the same to you, Pataki. You’re a lot cooler than I thought, but don’t mess with my best friend, y’hear?”

 

“Yeah, yeah”. She waved him off, not really catching onto what he had just implied. Arnold couldn’t help the small smile on his face at their civilness with each other, it even seemed like they respected one another more now. It filled him with happiness to know two of the most important people of his life could get along when before it had seemed nearly impossible.

 

Gerald turned towards Arnold, “I’ll make an excuse for you guys if anyone asks. See ya, man.”

 

“See ya, Gerald. And thanks, really.”

 

“No problem, brotha’”. And with that he started his way back.

 

He could feel Helga start to move and looked down. Her eyes roamed around their surroundings and she slowly began sitting up as he continued to support her. She let out a small groan and muttered to herself, “Augh, how long was I out. _Was_ all of that before just a dream or…?”

 

Arnold heard it though and had to resist the urge to facepalm and laugh at the outright silliness of her persistent denial. Instead he opted for a cheesy grin. “Guess what Sleeping Beauty,” She turned to him, one side of her brow raised and face reading of complete bewilderment at the comment, “you were awake the whole time!” He splayed his hands in front of him and waved them around for dramatic effect. “Plot twist!”

 

She narrowed her eyes and then rolled them so far Arnold was half convinced he wouldn’t see them again. She slowly stood up, Arnold’s arms still hovering to make sure she wouldn’t fall again. “Augh, are the little quips going to be a thing from now on? I’ve noticed an increase in _boldness_ coming from you lately.” She folded her arms against her chest and looked at him like she wasn’t really sure if she was prepared for the changes to come.

 

“Probably. Occasionally.” She narrowed her eyes at him and he grinned at her. “It helps that I know for sure I can get away with it now.” She’d have to deal with it, if she knew him half as much as she thought she did, she’d know he would never be one to just take everything lying down. A bit of fun teasing on his end for once could be fun. He was getting more excited by the minute.

 

Helga put a hand to her face, a muffled “Oh criminy.” could be heard which made him grin even more. She slowly peeked her eyes out and he noticed her face was red.

 

She looked cute when she blushed.

 

She quickly bent down to tie her shoe, he noticed it wasn’t actually untied but kept quiet. “So… all of that was true then?” He could see her hands slightly shake as the weight of everything he’d said dawned on her. “What you said, about l-like-”

 

“Yup.” He could feel the heat on his own cheeks as he held out his hand to her. “I meant every word, Helga”

 

She swallowed and accepted his hand. He could tell she was still pretty tired out from everything, though he could see a glimmer of excitement and hope in her eyes. “Oh. Ok.” He wove his fingers with her own and could feel her grip tighten a bit. And amused grin lit up her eyes even further. “Just don’t think I’m suddenly gonna go completely soft on ya, though. I hope you know what you’re signing up for, Football Head.”

 

He chuckled and started leading them back towards camp. “Believe me, Helga, _I know_.”

 


End file.
